Soldier Boy
by entwined-in-a-web
Summary: Tunny has always gotten crap from everyone for wanting to join the military. He just wanted to make a difference. But what happens when that 'difference' goes terribly wrong? REVIEW PLEASE!


**A/N: So yeah, my uploading frenzy failed….**

**SO here's this! I'm going to go make myself some bacon. =D**

**Angsty Tunny makes me want to hug him more…**

**REVIEW PLEASE!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own AI or the adorableness that is the only functional relationship in this show.**

It gets lonely out here sometimes. Some nights when we're patrolling the streets, I get a glimpse of just a little family, huddling inside their home, hoping that tonight wasn't going to be their last night together. I had to look away….

I still think of my family, safe and sound back in Jingletown. My father just sitting around, drinking his coffee, not having a care in the world…while over here I'm fighting for my life every day. My mother gossiping with her friends about who's in what career and how much they're making. But she never once mentions me.

They were ashamed when I told them I was going into the military. This wasn't part of their life plan for me. They told me that boys who come from money like me shouldn't be stooping down to that level, it was just unprofessional. What did I say in return? Fuck that. I'm doing what I feel is right. Then I stormed out….

All the other guys around me seem to bond, they're all like each other's best friends. I appreciate it when they try to include me, make me feel more welcomed. But I guess I'm the loner over here. I know these aren't my friends, and I just can't adapt to them…God…

If there was one thing worse than telling my parents, it was telling my friends.

"_You're WHAT?" Johnny asked, completely frazzled by the news._

"_Joining the army…." I replied quietly, packing my things back up. It seemed like we just got here to the city and I couldn't stand it anymore…_

"_No!" He protested, blocking me from getting to my bags. "You're not gonna do this to me!"_

"_Do what?"_

_I could tell he had tears in his eyes by now. "You'll get killed over there, Tunny…" He took a moment to compose himself. "I can't lose anyone else to this fucking war!"_

_I kept forgetting his father was killed in Iraq when this whole thing started…But this was my choice! Not his! "Look, I won't get killed….and even if I do, I was doing something meaningful. Just think of that. Don't think about the death…"_

_Before I knew it, his arms had pulled me into a tight embrace. I wish he hadn't done that…now it only made it that much harder to leave…._

_I finished packing my things and left the next morning. I had to stop back in Jingletown, had to say goodbye to Will…I wouldn't just leave him…I soon found myself inside his apartment, nervously standing in front of him, waiting the opportune moment to break the news._

"_So what are you doing back so soon?" he asked, smirking. "Did Johnny ditch you already?"_

_I tried to laugh along, but it was too hard…I just shook my head and said straightforwardly, "I'm joining the military."_

"_What?" but it didn't come from Will. Just entering the room now was Heather. "You're not serious, are you?"_

"_Dead."_

_Her hand flew to her mouth and tears came to her eyes. I knew if she wasn't pregnant, she wouldn't be acting like this. Her hormones were already wacked up…She would've been proud of me. But instead she tossed down the basket of laundry she was carrying and rushed over to me, crying hysterically into my shoulder, her arms wrapped tightly around me. _

"_Tunny…Tunny, please don't…"_

"_I have to…"_

"_No! No you don't! Please…."_

_I rubbed her back and attempted to console her, while trying not to cry myself. "Shhh…it'll be ok…I'll be fine. I'll be fine…."_

_While she continued to cry, I looked up at Will's expressionless face. His brown eyes fixated on me, like he didn't know what to do. We'd always been best friends. Since kindergarten. And now I was going off to war, where I could potentially be shot, kidnapped, tortured or killed. He had every right to react the way he did. _

_As soon as I got Heather settled down, I walked over to him and sat next to him. He still had that dazed expression on his face. I didn't know of he was angry with me or worried. _

"_So…" he started, trying not to let me hear his voice shaking. "When do you leave?"_

"_Tomorrow morning." And that's all I needed to say before I felt the tears filling up my eyes. No. I can't cry. I have to show everyone that I can do this. I will make a difference, whether they support me or not…_

_We sat in silence for what seemed like hours before he let me see under his tough guy exterior. His eyes were brimming with tears, the same as mine. And as if on cue, the both of us just sped into a hurried, painful, tea-filled embrace. _

Leaving Will had to be the hardest thing for me. We've been best friends since like the beginning of our lives. And now we may not ever see each other again. I don't know what's going to happen here. I never did.

I remember doing my usual patrols, moving around with the other guys. It was strangely quiet today. We'd been told to check out some abandoned building because it was looking kind of suspicious. We walked right in, all of us hesitant. It seemed completely silent, not a soul in there.

I heard the smallest, faintest whimper coming from nowhere. My head shot around, my gun in my hand. There crumpled in the corner was just a little Iraqi girl, terrified and crying. By the looks of it, she hadn't eaten in days, her clothes dirty, no parents in sight. I don't know why, but I felt so drawn to her. Like I needed to help her. Maybe this was my chance, maybe I could make my difference now. I looked around cautiously and started towards her, smiling as gently as I could. I was about to bend down to meet her eyes at her level when I heard one of my buddies just yell, "CLARKE!"

Before I knew it, I could hear angry foreign voices shouting, the sound of gunfire. I felt pain…too much pain. This was it. I knew I shouldn't have come…

I was shot in the leg, completely immobile. The enemy was in the building, and we were now undergoing a full-blown ambush. Shots being fired everywhere. I looked to the little girl who was still there and I screamed for her to go, which she did surprisingly fast.

I saw one of my best friends run in front of me and take a bullet to the abdomen. Another one taking a shot through the chest. I don't think I've ever felt so terrified before in my life. I felt an arm pull me out from the chaos, but I tried to refuse. I had to protect them, they were all I had now. But the arm just kept pulling me and pulling me.

"NO! JUST LET ME GO BACK! I HAVE TO HELP THEM! JUST LET ME-!"

"CLARKE LET'S GO!" The voice of the person dragging me out yelled.

No! He didn't understand! What if these were my friends? What if it was Johnny who had took a bullet for me? What if it was Will? I'd help them. Goddammit, I'd help them!

The ride to the hospital was the worst, worse than actually being shot. I was so exhausted and weak…My vision was fuzzy, I was dizzy.

All I could see was a small figure leaning over me, looking at my wound. I groaned in pain, teeth clenched tight, as they moved my leg around.

"It's ok…" Their soft, sweet voice whispered to me. It was a woman. "We'll be there in no time…"

I nodded and listened to her. Her voice was so calming, entrancing even. I felt her hand in mine, making sure I was ok. I still couldn't see very well, but I could tell she was beautiful. Her hand was soft and gentle, her voice so dainty and frail…

We made an abrupt stop. She stopped me from flying forward and hurting myself even more.

"Come on, you…" She whispered again. I could feel her wrapping her arms around me and before I knew it, I wasn't on the stretcher I was on earlier. She was carrying me. I felt like I was flying, it was so flawless. I wondered what she looked like. She sounded and felt so fragile and weak. But there she was carrying heavy me about 20 or so feet into the OR.

She's extraordinary.

Hours passed. They had tried to operate on me, get the bullet out. I was out for hours after the operation, practically fast asleep. But waking up felt like the worst hangover you could ever have. I was dizzy, my vision still as blurry. I saw that figure in front of me again. The woman.

I groaned as I slowly woke up, my eyes going into focus now. I got a good look at this woman who had already done so much for me. She wasn't beautiful. She was gorgeous. Her eyes were a soft brown, giving me a calming, gentle stare. She wore her dark hair tied up behind her head. By what I could tell, she was a nurse.

"Somebody's up…" she smiled, almost darting to my side. "You feeling ok?"

I nodded, stretching out my tired, weak arms. "Yeah…for the time being."

"You guys got hit pretty hard out there, Private….um, sorry. Didn't really catch your name."

"Clarke. Tunny Clarke."

She giggled light heartedly. It was an adorable giggle. "Your name is Tunny?"

I rolled my eyes and decided to stretch out my legs. "Well, no. It's a nickname actually, but it just kind of…." I just stopped. My right leg was numb. Completely. I thought at first that it was just an anesthesia thing. But then I got suspicious. I had to see what was going on. I lifted the sheet and looked down to see how bad the damage was. But what I saw, I couldn't comprehend.

Gone. The entire bottom half of my leg was gone. I could just feel everything bubbling up inside of me and I tried not to explode in front of this nurse, but I couldn't help it.

"WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED?"

She sighed and threw me a pitiful, I'm-so-sorry-you-have-no-idea sort of glance. "They couldn't get the whole bullet out. It shattered everywhere when it made contact with you. So…they had no other choice but to….amputate it."

"H-H-How can that even be…? No! NO! Why did they-?"

"Shhhh…" she hushed me, bending down next to me, her hand on my cheek gently. "It's ok… You'll get through this. It happens to people all the time. Not to mention you'll probably get a free ticket right out of here."

I rolled my eyes and just scoffed. "You know, even if I do get out, I can't exactly go back to normal or anything…"

She traced her hand from my face down to my shoulder. "I'll work with you. We'll have you walking in no time."

For the first time in weeks, I smiled. She was so optimistic. She wanted to help me. And I was thankful for that.

"Thanks, um….I don't know your name either."

But before she could answer another nurse ran into the room and called for her to get to the OR. She sighed and just smiled at me.

"I've gotta go…Don't worry, Tunny, we'll figure this out…"

And she was gone.

I just sat there alone. Nothing could've made me happier at the moment. Not any drug or Johnny or even Will.

Just my extraordinary girl.

**A/N: BLATANT NICKNAMES!**

**Reviews?**


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